The Amungme are a Melanesian group of about 13,000 people living in the highlands of the Papua province of Indonesia. They practice shifting agriculture, supplementing their livelihood by hunting and gathering. The Amungme are very tied to their ancestral land and consider the surrounding mountains to be sacred. This has led to friction with the Indonesian government, which is eager to exploit the vast mineral deposits contained there. The greatest problem faced by the Amungme today is an enormous mine, owned by the United States and the United Kingdom, situated in the heart of Amungme territory. Extensive gold and copper mining have destroyed the landscape and led to numerous protests, which have been violently suppressed by the Indonesian military.